The Pistons will try to avoid their 25th straight loss Thursday night at Little Caesars Arena -- and against a depleted Jazz lineup, they might (!!) have a chance. That's the state of Troy Weaver's so-called restoration in his fourth season as GM.
Is it time to blow it all up? Weaver would never consider this, as his tenure is tied to the success or failure of the players he drafted, but there's a case to be made to start over.
If owner Tom Gores brings in new leadership -- no indication that he will -- might the Pistons listen to trade offers for Cade Cunningham? The first overall pick in 2021 could net the kind of haul that would set the organization up for the future. (We know. Cunningham was supposed to be the future.)
Longtime NBA writer Bill Simmons suggested this week that the Spurs should trade for Cunningham to form a dynamic duo with Victor Wembanyama, and that the Pistons would get four first-round picks in return: the Spurs' first in 2024 (likely to be in the top 10), the Raptors' first in 2024 (top-six protected), the Hawks' first in 2025 and the Bulls' first in 2025 (top-10 protected).
"If I'm firing everyone in the front office and I'm Tom Gores, I'm like, 'That didn't work. We had the first, fifth, fifth and seventh picks in the draft and we just lost 23 games in a row," Simmons said on the podcast he hosts with Ryen Russillo.
Cunningham, 22, is averaging 22.2 points, 7.0 assists and 3.9 rebounds this season after missing most of last season due to surgery on his shin.
You're not trading Cade," said Russillo. "It can be awful, they could lose every game the rest of the way, the front office doesn't want to turn to the fan base and be like, 'OK, we screwed it up with him.' You'd rather rude it out and have him be really disappointing for five years."
